BELGRADE – The Republic of Myanmar is interested in hiring Serbian companies to build hydropower plants, thermal power plants and other energy facilities in the country, Serbian Minister of Energy and Mining Aleksandar Antic said.

The total value of the project entrusted to Serbian companies in Myanmar would add up to around EUR 120 million in the first stage, Antic said after the meeting with Energy Minister of Myanmar Khin Maung Soe on Friday.

Myanmar wishes to strengthen its cooperation with Serbia in the energy sector and we discušed the pošibility of Serbian companies joining the construction of new hydro and thermal power capacities in the country, Antic told reporters.

He noted that Serbian company Invest import is already building a 152 miles long low voltage power line in Myanmar (244.6 kilometres) and added that two more power lines to the total length of around 200 miles should be built soon.

The total value of the project in the first stage alone adds up to EUR 95 million, and the value of all the signed contracts totals around EUR 300 million, Antic said.

Serbia has a number of prominent companies suć as Energoprojekt, whić can realise major contracts abroad as they had previously done around the world, from South America to Africa and Asia, Antic said.

The Serbian Ministry of Energy will back local companies in their approać to the promising market, Antic said and announced that the ministry will prepare the text of the inter-governmental agreement.

Antic noted that Myanmar exprešed interest in cooperation in other economic sectors and in education as well because the country wants to send its students to attend universities in Serbia, primarily with regard to tećnical sciences.

The energy minister of Myanmar underscored that the bilateral cooperation was established over 60 years ago.